


Strange Encounters

by ElizabethWilde



Category: Young Hercules
Genre: Angst, Drama, F/M, Family Relations, Friendship, Romance, daddy Strife, gods being gods
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 1999-07-11
Updated: 1999-07-11
Packaged: 2018-03-30 02:31:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,417
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3919546
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ElizabethWilde/pseuds/ElizabethWilde
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Iolaus finds and befriends a strange young girl who is much more than she seems.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Strange Encounters

Hercules shook his head. "No thank you! Last time I went to a fair with you, I spent the whole time trying to talk various authority figures out of throwing you in jail." 

"Aw, c'mon, Herc! It wasn't that bad!" Iolaus protested. "Only two of them wanted me in jail. The other three wanted to hang me." 

"Oh, yeah, *that's* better. Anyway, I'm sitting this one out, okay?" 

"Fine. Suit yourself! I'll have more fun on my own anyway!" Iolaus replied, tucked his blond hair back behind his ears. "Less competition for the girls." 

"Whatever you say, buddy," Hercules replied as he headed off in the other direction. 

//He doesn't know what he's missing! I'm gonna have a great time with or without 'im! // The hunter began whistling as he strolled down the path toward the fair. //Yeah, this is gonna be a great day! // 

Iolaus was so busy trying to convince himself about what a great time he was destined to have that he almost tripped over a young girl crouched on the side of the road. She had long black hair that was matted with grass and tangles and a slender, pixie-like face. Large blue eyes peered at him warily. "Uh, hi." 

She growled in response and lunged for him. "Hey, wait!" The girl hit him in the chest, sending him sprawling, but Iolaus managed to grab her wrists and roll so that she was beneath him. "Whatever happened to a friendly hello before attacking somebody, huh?" She said nothing. "What, don't you speak Greek? Who are you?" 

She glared at him fiercely, then turned her head and tried to bit his hand, but her jerked it back before she could. "Not very friendly, are you?" Iolaus could feel her bones portruding through her skin. "Been awhile since you've eaten. I'm going to take you back to the academy and then we'll try to figure out what to do with you." Iolaus pulled her up gently and wrapped his arm around her waist to keep her from escaping. //So much for the fair! // 

The girl didn't even bother struggling as they walked down the path. Iolaus took in her dirty face and ragged clothing. All attempts at making conversation failed miserably. She didn't seem to understand a word of Greek. "Look, I can't just call you 'you' forever, so how's about I give you a name?" 

Her wide blue eyes regarded him silently. "Yeah, well... Hmm... How about Kira? No, that's not right. Uh... Lorel? Nah. Man, this is harder than I thought." He snapped the fingers of his free hand. "I got it! Marilea! I knew a girl named that once. Boy, was she ever gorgeous! She- Wait, you don't care. Sorry." He looked up and felt a surge of relief. "Here we are! The Academy! You're gonna like it here. Lots of nice people." 

Iolaus pushed open the gates and walked inside. Several cadets in the middle of training exercises stopped to stare at them. When one approached too closely, Marilea growled and snapped at his hands. "Uh, sorry, friend! She's a little.. tired. Yeah, she needs rest." Iolaus quickly ushered her into the dorms. He stopped in front of Lilith's room. "Hey, Lilith! I need your help out here!" 

"Okay. Just a sec, Iolaus!" Within a minute, the blond-headed girl stepped out of her room. "Hey, who's this?" 

"This is, er, Marliea. I kinda found her." 

"What, did she follow you home?" 

"Ha, ha. No, she... She doesn't seem to understand any Greek. And she needs some new clothes... and a bath. Anyway, I figured you should do that, you being a girl and all." 

"So you bring home a stray and I take care of it, hmm?" 

"Lilith, please!" 

Lilith smirked. "Begging suits you. Fine." She reached out and took Marliea's arm, but the girl howled and then scratched Lilith's cheek. "Ow! Hey!" 

Iolaus grabbed Marilea's arm. "Hold it! Calm down! She's gonna help ya get cleaned up!" Their eyes met, and he knew that she wasn't going to stand for the added assistance. "Aw, c'mon, I can't!" 

"Uh, Iolaus, you're arguing with someone who hasn't said a word to you." 

"But I can't tell what she's thinking!" he protested. 

"Sure you can. Just keep telling yourself that. You're on your own. *You* get her clean. I don't need any scars from giving some wierd chick a bath." Lilith walked back into her room and shut the door. 

"Lilith! Hey! Aw, man! Now what?" 

"Okay, let's go." Iolaus led Marilea back to his room. "Good, Hercules and Jason aren't here. That would be WAY not fun." He grabbed one of his old shirts and a pair of pants. "These are going to be big on you, but it's the best I can do." He also grabbed a comb, a towel, and a washcloth. "I guess we get you bathed now." 

More than a little nervous, Iolaus held Marilea's hand tightly as they snuck back to the showers. "Nobody around. Okay, that's a plus. Um, you're gonna hafta take that off." He pointed to her tattered dress and indicated pulling it over her head. 

Without hesitation, the girl mimicked the action, removing the dress quickly. "Hello! Uh... just... uh..." Iolaus tried desperately not to stare. //Once she's cleaned up, she's gonna be a *major* babe!// Iolaus pulled a lever and water cascaded down, washing over Marliea and removing much of the dirt from her slender form. 

Blushing furiously, Iolaus gently scrubbed her face with the washcloth and the last of the dirt was rinsed free. The hunter then did his best to wash all of the dirt and grass from her soft hair. He also cleaned her arms off, then held the cloth out to her, praying to any god who would listen that she'd understand to finish herself. After a moment of indecision, Marilea took the cloth and continued to wash herself. Iolaus turned around, hoping to be at least a little discreet. 

When she was done, Marilea held the washcloth out to him again. Iolaus dried her hair himself, then did his best to show her how to finish. She seemed to understand completely and was soon dry again. Iolaus helped her put on the pants, which were quite baggy on her, then the shirt, which he tied above her waist so that it didn't look quite so ill-fitting. Also, he brushed out her long, dark hair until it shone and was free of any tangles. 

"There!" He stepped back to admire their handiwork. "Wow! You look... absolutely beautiful." Iolaus had never seen anyone quite like her. //She's something, alright. I just hope Cheiron doesn't mind that we have a new cadet who doesn't even know she *is* a cadet.// "C'mon, Mari, we're going to go meet Cheiron, okay?" 

She stretched out her hand instinctively and he took it in his own. They took the long way to the training room to avoid as many of the other cadets as possible. "Uh, Cheiron?" Iolaus asked hesitantly when they finally found him. "This is Marilea. She... She needs a place to stay, and I was thinking that maybe she could be a cadet?" 

The centaur looked down at the girl. "Can you speak for yourself?" he asked softly. 

She looked at him blankly and turned to Iolaus. "No, she can't. I mean, I don't think she knows Greek. I kinda... found her on the way to the fair. She was wearing this really dirty dress that looked really old. I don't know where she came from, but... Well, can she stay, please?" 

Cheiron nodded solemnly. "Yes, but I expect you to help her since it is you who brought her here, Iolaus. Can you do that?" 

"I don't think that will be a problem," he responded with a small smile. 

"Good. Now, why don't you take her to Lilith and-" 

"No! I mean, well, I took her to Lilith. She... She doesn't seem to wanna have anything to do with anybody but me." 

"Really?" 

"Yeah. She gets a little... upset." 

"Upset?" 

"Yeah." 

"Fine. Then take her to your room... if it's okay with Jason and Hercules." 

"Thanks, Cheiron!" Iolaus and Marilea turned and set out to look for his friends. "Now all I gotta do is get through all the ribbing they're going to give me and we're home free!" Not having any clue as to what he'd said, Marilea simply smiled. 

Strife stamped his foot on the ground. "She got away!" he whined. 

"Shut up, Strife!" Discord snapped testily. "You should have expected this. "I mean, you never even left guards. Just gave her that self-replacing cupboard and left her alone locked in this stupid temple." She kicked at a chunk of crumbling wall. "Whose temple is it anyway?" 

"I dunno. I think one of the Titans. But that doesn't matter! Cyrelle was supposed to stay here until she was old enough to become a full god! Then I was gonna train her and stuff!" 

"You should have raised her if you wanted her trained, Idiot!" 

"I'm not the mothering kind," Strife sniffed. 

"Then why didn't you just leave her with her mother until she was old enough?" 

"Because I wanted my daughter with me!" 

"But you were never here?" Discord sounded near the breaking point. 

"That's beside the issue. The point is, I'm her father and now that she's old enough to be my protégé, I want her back!" 

Discord rolled her eyes. "Then get her! You know where she is. Go and kill that stupid mortal friend of Hercules and get her back, then you can stop whining about it to me!" 

Strife seemed to consider the idea for a moment. "You know, I think I'll go get her back . . ." 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

"Herc! Jason!" Iolaus called out when he finally saw his friends lounging near the dorms. 

The friends started to wave, then both did a double-take upon spotting Marilea. Jason stepped forward. "Hel-lo, beautiful." 

"Uh, Jason, don't get too close!" Iolaus warned. 

"Afraid of a little competition?" 

"No, actually, I'm afraid of what she'll do to you if you take another step towards us." 

Jason smiled at her. "You wouldn't hurt me, would you?" He reached over to take her hand and she bent over and bit a chunk of flesh out of his. "OUCH! Jeez! She isn't rabid, is she?" 

Iolaus put his arm around Marilea's shoulder. "No. She's just not used to you. Or anybody else for that matter." He seemed suddenly nervous. "But, uh, I need to ask you guys something." 

Hercules eyed the girl speculatively. "First, where'd she come from?" 

"Well, ya see, I was on my way to the fair and I kinda stumbled across her. Her name's Marilea. Well, that's what I'm calling her, anyway. She doesn't seem to know Greek. Or any other language that I can tell. See, the thing is... she needs a place to stay." 

"And?" Hercules prompted. 

"I want her to stay with us." 

"You mean here at the academy, right? Like, with Lilith?" 

"Kinda. I was thinking... Can she stay in our room? I'm the only person she doesn't try to maul for coming near her! Please? I'll take good care of her!" 

Jason and Hercules exchanged looks. "Sounds like he wants a puppy, doesn't it?" Jason asked. 

Iolaus prepared to do some serious whining. "C'mon, guys, please! She doesn't have anybody else in the whole world! As far as I know anyway... Please?" 

Hercules exhaled in a pained manner. "I'm okay with it if Jason is." 

The prince smiled. "Fine. But if she bites me again, you do my cleaning for a month!" 

"Deal!" Iolaus agreed without thinking. He gave Marilea a quick hug, which she responded to by looking at him as if he were totally insane. Then she tilted her head to the side and studied him. "What? Why're you looking at me like that?" She simply stared at him for a few more seconds, then put her arms around his waist and laid her head on his shoulder. 

Jason and Hercules grinned at him. "Good to know that you're only in this for selfless reasons," Hercules commented. 

"Of course!" 

From a few yards away, Strife watched the conversation. "Trying to turn my daughter into one of their little do-gooder cadets, are they? Well, once I get rid of that annoying little blond, the other two will be more than willing to give my little Cyrelle back." The god giggled to himself and disappeared. 

Hercules and Jason followed close behind Iolaus and Marilea as they headed back to the dorm. "We finally get a girl in here and the only one she doesn't try to kill is Iolaus," Jason complained. 

"It's not so bad... maybe she'll eventually learn to want to kill him too," Hercules offered. 

Iolaus turned to them. "Ha, ha. And you say *my* jokes are bad!" 

"They are," the others replied in unison. 

Hercules suddenly stopped. "Hey, I forgot to eat! I'm starved! I'm gonna head over to Cora's. You guys wanna join me?" 

Jason grinned. "I'm there! Iolaus? Wanna show your new girlfriend the sights?" 

"I think we'd probably better hang here... Ya know, *away* from people she'll try to bite pieces out of?" 

"Good point," Jason mumbled, rubbing his wounded hand. "See ya later!" 

"Bye!" Iolaus called after them. "Well, just you and me again," he said to Marilea. She smiled though there was no recognition of his meaning. "Wish you could understand me. Oh, well." There was a flash of light to their right and Iolaus instinctively pushed Marilea behind him. "Strife!" 

"Aw, you recognize me! How sweet!" the god cried. "But enough with the chit-chat. I want my daughter back." 

"Daughter?" Iolaus pointed to Marilea. "Her? *Your* daughter?" 

"Don't sound so shocked! She has my looks, after all." 

"Uh... yeah. But if she's your daughter, why doesn't she speak Greek? And why was she so messed up when I found her?" 

"Because! I'm a god! I don't have to explain my reasons to foolish mortals like you! So there!" Strife stuck out his tongue at Iolaus. 

"Oh-kay. Fine." He whirled around and shoved Marilea toward the dorm. "RUN!" She seemed to catch the drift and lit out for the nearest entrance. Iolaus lunged for Strife to keep the god from following. 

"GET OFF!" Strife bellowed, sending an electric charge through the boy's body. Iolaus fell to the ground unconcious. "I warned you! Now, to get my little girl . . ." 

Marilea ducked into the building. She looked around frantically, but all there seemed to be were dozens of long tables. She vaguely recalled seeing some of the boys eating there earlier. In her mind's eye, she saw Iolaus motioning for her to run. Tears stung her eyes. Lost and confused, Marilea didn't know what to do. 

"Darling!" Strife called from just behind her. The girl jumped and scrambled back a few feet. "Now, now, don't be shy! It's me! Daddy! Come here, Cyrelle!" 

//Cyrelle?// The word was utterly foreign. She shook her head. 

"Cyrelle, come here!" Strife ordered. 

She shook her head again and pointed to her chest. "Mari!" It seemed obvious to her that the word for herself was Marilea. The strange, pale man before her must not know that. "Mari!" she repeated confidently. 

The god scowled. "No! You," he pointed to her, "are Cyrelle, my daughter! NOT Marilea!" 

"Mari!" 

When Strife glared poisonously at her, she turned and ran back out into the alley. What she saw frightened her more than having the odd man chasing her. The nice blond boy lay on the ground, still and barely breathing. Her pulse quickened. 

She had seen dead things before. When she was very small, there was a little mouse that had come to share her food. One day Marilea had found it in the corner of her prison, unmoving and cold. It never played with her again. Obviously the one called Iolaus was near death too. Not knowing how to react, she reached out her hands and laid them on his bare chest. Through the warm skin, she could feel his heart beating and the air laboriously filling and exiting his lungs. She willed the air to flow faster, the heart to beat with greater passion. 

Behind her, Strife laughed. "You are my daughter! You see! Only a goddess could have such skill at healing!" 

A brilliant white light surrounded her hands. For some reason, the strange occurrence didn't bother Marilea. It seemed natural, comfortable. And she could feel Iolaus's breath moving more regularly, his heart pumping blood with a much stronger rhythm. She sighed. All would be well. He would heal. She wouldn't lose her new friend. 

"Now that you see what you are, you're ready to be taught how to use your powers," Strife whispered in her ear. "Come! We have much to do!" 

Before Mari could utter any protest, they disappeared. 

Strife and Marilea appeared in the abandoned Temple. He giggled and gave Discord a delighted smile. "See! I told you I could bring her back!" 

"Joy." The goddess was obviously underwhelmed. "And I care why again? Kinda pretty." Discord gingerly lifted a clump of the girl's jet black hair and let it drop. "Well, she definitely takes after her mother." 

"Yeah, she- Hey!" 

"So, Cyrelle, what do you think of your new home?" 

Again the strange name sounded roughly in her ears. "Mari!" she replied once more, touching her chest. 

"Whatever you say. I thought she couldn't talk, Strife." 

He shrugged elaborately and draped an arm around Mari's shoulder. "What can I say? She's a natural." 

"Been learning from that little cadet, I'd wager. But it doesn't matter. Iolaus is dead now, and-" 

"Well..." 

"Well what?" Discord asked threatening, taking a step toward Strife, who retreated. 

"Iolaus... CyrellehealedhimandtherewasnothingIcoulddoaboutit!" 

"WHAT?! He's alive? But you were supposed to kill him! It was supposed to crush Hercules! You idiot!" Discord boxed Strife's ears. "Now what are we going to do?" 

"Hey! Just because I haven't killed him yet doesn't mean I can't! Besides, I think it's high time Cyrelle learned to use her powers. I thought I could, uh, catch him! Yeah, that's it. Catch him and let *her* deal with him." 

The goddess considered. "Hmm... Iolaus killed by his new girlfriend." An evil grin lit her makeup-caked face. "I like it. Very... poetic." She laughed. "Now make it happen!" With that, Discord vanished. 

Slowly and painfully, Iolaus pushed himself into a sitting position. For several moments, the world spun crazily and he felt the urge to throw up. "Okay, ouch. This is bad. But at least I'm sitting. Now the hard part." He tried to stand, but only got a couple centimeters off the ground before almost passing out. 

"Where's Mari? Hey! Mari?! MARI!" //If Strife hurt her, I swear I will kick his pale, ugly butt into another dimension!//

The hunter took a slow, deep breath and pushed himself onto his hands and knees. It hurt a lot less that time and the world merely swayed from side to side rather than spinning. "Better than the spiral thing, I guess." With an effort, Iolaus used a nearby tree to get into a standing position. The rough bark took a few nice chunk of flesh out of his arm as he leaned against it, gasping for breath and trying to keep his dinner down. "But at least I'm standing. That's good, right?" 

"Wrong," a voice answered. "It's much easier to get knocked down when you're standing up." 

"Strife." Iolaus turned to face the god, almost falling to the ground again as another wave of nausea hit him full force. "Where's Marilea? What have you done with her?" 

"*Cyrelle* is safe. She's with me now. No need to worry your empty little head about it anymore." Strife giggled at his own joke. "So, how do you wanna die? Slow and painful or quick and *more* painful?" 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

"So you're a goddess?" Discord mused, staring hard at the girl in front of her. 

Marilea watched Discord through slitted eyes. "Iolaus?" she asked. She was tired of being looked at like some freak of nature by the odd woman. She wanted her friend and her new home again. 

"He's being killed as we speak, unless Strife is even less competent than I give him credit for. The boy'd half-dead already, it shouldn't take much." The goddess ran a finger along Mari's cheek. "So pretty. Tell you what, I'll teach you how to be a goddess and you... you will be my bargaining chip. There's a lot of people who wouldn't mind spending some time with a pretty little goddess like yourself. Ares's generals are loyal to him because of the perks. If my perks are better... Say hello to the new Goddess of War." 

"I don't care what you do to me as long as Mari's okay. Where are you keeping her?" Iolaus demanded. 

"Oh, some temple to one of the Titans. Not that it matters. Now, let's get this over with, shall we?" 

Hercules and Jason suddenly ran into the alley where Strife and Iolaus stood, Iolaus trying to stay conscious and Strife trying to decide how best to kill their friend. The hunter winced. "Cutting it a little close, aren't you, guys?" 

"Hey, at least we came!" Hercules replied. "Strife, what do you think you're doing?" 

"Killing your friend. Now get outta the way so I can finish." 

"I don't think so." 

"And you think you can stop me?" Strife hissed. 

"Yes, actually, I do. I have before." 

The god straightened a bit and ran a finger around the rim of his collar as though it were suddenly a bit too tight. "Yeah, well... That was then, this is now." 

"Some things never change." Hercules and Jason both stepped forward. 

Strife retreated a step then put on his best front. "Come on! I can take the both of you!" 

"I hope so for your sake," replied Jason calmly. 

Before Strife could try anything fancy with his powers, Hercules charged, his head connecting firmly with the god's stomach. Strife grunted and fell back. He wrapped a leg around one of Hercules's and pulled the demi-god onto the ground as well. The two struggled there for a few moments until Jason grabbed Strife by the back of his collar and held him with his feet dangling over the ground. "You haven't won yet!" Strife yelled petulantly before disappearing. 

Hercules shook his head, then rushed over to help Iolaus. "You okay, buddy? Lookin' kinda pale." 

"Strife hit me with a little energy ball. I'd be dead if it weren't for Marilea. He's got her locked up in some temple to one of the titans. We have to find her, Herc!" 

"Okay, we will. You in, Jason?" 

"Of course! Let's go." 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Marilea shook her head emphatically. She couldn't understand a word the strange woman said. Iolaus always made sense even when his words didn't. 

"You fool! You're a goddess! This knowledge is inside of you! Gods, if you'd just let yourself, you'd understand every word I say. Moreover, you'd begin to see your powers!" Discord took a deep breath. "Okay, here, I'll give ya a jump start, okay?" She placed her cold hands on Mari's shoulders and the girl shivered. A strange red light hung in the air for a moment and was gone. "Now, do you understand me?" 

Mari almost protested again, then realized that she had understood. Perfectly. "Yes." //I know that word! I know all of these words!// "I understand!" 

Hercules, Iolaus, and Jason arrived at the temple where Iolaus believed Strife had taken Marilea. "This is it. I think." 

"I love how you're so confident," Hercules grinned, patting his friend on the back. The three walked up the steps as quickly as possible. Iolaus took a deep breath and shoved open the door. "Mari?" 

The girl heard his voice from the other room and left Discord in the dust. "Iolaus!" she cried, throwing her arms around his neck. "I'm so happy you're here!" 

"Mari? You... you...just-" 

"I know. I understand now! Discord helped me. She did it to help herself, of course, but... But now I can talk to you." Her eyes shone with pride. 

"Aw, Mari, this is great! I mean, now we can-" 

"GET AWAY FROM HER!" Discord screeched. 

"No!" replied the hunter defiantly. "She can choose who *she* wants to be with. It has nothing to do with you." 

"He's right," agreed Hercules as he and Jason stepped in front of the couple. "Marilea has a mind of her own, and you can't control her." 

"Says who?!" The goddess gathered a ball of lightening in her cupped hands, but before she could hurl it at the disobedient mortals, Ares appeared behind her. 

"ENOUGH! I am sick of finding out your stupid plots *after* you've put them into action." Ares grabbed the back of Discord's skimpy dress and hefted her into the air. "We need to talk." They disappeared in a flash of light. 

"Uh, well, guess now we go home, right?" Iolaus said. 

"I guess so." Mari seemed less enthusiastic, less certain than she had a moment before. "Home..." 

The foursome had almost reached the academy when Marilea suddenly stopped. "I can't." 

"What?" Iolaus asked, completely confused. "You can't what?" 

"I can't go back to the academy. I'm sorry!" She held Iolaus's hands tightly in her own. "I want to stay with you, but... I don't even know myself yet. There's so much that I need to learn! I'm a goddess, and I need to find out for myself exactly what that means for me. For us." 

Iolaus swallowed hard. Jason and Hercules kept walking, realizing that the two needed to talk... alone. "Mari, I'm going to miss you so much! And how will I ever find you again?" 

"I'll miss you too!" She rested her head on his chest and sighed. "But don't worry about not seeing me. I'm a goddess, remember? I can find you. And I will. I promise. You're my only real friend." 

Blinking back a sudden wave of tears, Iolaus kissed the top of her head, taking in the smell of her hair, the way her skin felt against his. "I'm going to hold you to that promise, ya know." 

She laughed and stepped back. "I know. I wouldn't have it any other way." With that, Marilea smiled and began walking back down the road, away from her friend.


End file.
